A new leader has emerged amid a closely contested battle for the top spot in the Leg 2 standings, as Jill Scott Hirons now leads on 181 points.
An impressive 80-point haul – bettered by just one player in Leg 2’s top 10, Schoolboy Errors, and matched by fourth-placed For Beata or Worse – has seen the new frontrunner claim a one-point lead.
Less be honest and AWFC follow in joint-second place on 180 points while Endemann Credits is two points further back in fifth place.
Interestingly, none of the players in the overall standings’ top 10 feature in Leg 2’s top 10. Rolling on a Riviere and Team name, however, are just two points adrift.
So what sets these teams apart? We analyse the top performers to uncover the strategies behind their fantasy success this week.
Critical captaincy choices
Picking the right captain is a surefire way to maximise your fantasy points, especially in a matchweek where overall scores are down.
Matchweek 6 saw several players kickstart Leg 2 by breaking the 100-point mark, though the highest-scoring teams fell short of that tally this week.
Arsenal’s Alessia Russo was the most popular pick, chosen by 80% of the top 10 players. The decision earned them 20 points, almost half the 48-point average across all fantasy players this week.
Birmingham's Océane Hurtré (7 points - 14 for captain picks) and Brighton's Fran Kirby (9 points - 18 for captain picks) also proved good choices.
Chelsea's Melvine Malard (17 points) was the optimal choice among popularly selected players, with the captaincy bonus taking her to 34 points this week.
Had leader Jill Scott Hirons picked Malard over Russo, they would be further clear at the top.
The recent matchweek has also highlighted that changing your captain is a smart tactic. Manchester City's Bunny Shaw was a highly popular choice last week, but switching to Russo earned players a six-point swing.
How good are your differentials?
With consistent point winners difficult to come by, it is no surprise that many of the same faces appear across the highest-scoring teams.
In fact, each of the top 10 lineups include Shaw, Russo, Hurté, Lauren Hemp, Daniëlle van de Donk and Ellie Carpenter. Andrea Medina is in all but one.
The tactic is a fantasy staple across sports and formats: overlook the players everyone else is picking, and you risk falling behind. Though perhaps it is why this week saw no player earn a three-digit haul for the first time this season.
This is where your differentials - those players not as highly-selected - come in clutch. For fourth-placed For Beata or Worse, a defensive Birmingham double up of Sophie Baggaley and Neve Herron earned 17 points.
Baggaley and Herron are owned by just 3% and 1% of players, respectively, which proves that thinking outside the box and targeting favourable fixtures is another route to valuable points.
Defenders not a route to points this week
It is also natural for players to jump straight to the big scorers in the forward line when building a team they think can score big in fantasy.
But defenders - capable of winning big points through goals, assists and clean sheets - can be just as reliable, except for this week.
Birmingham and Brighton were the only teams across the Barclays Women's Super League and Barclays Women's Super League 2 to keep a clean sheet.
Joint 10th-place koukis and Aerial Supremacy benefited from Brighton's 1-0 win over Charlton by selecting Manuela Vanegas and Caitlin Hayes, respectively.
Schoolboy Errors won seven points from Seagulls shotstopper Chiamaka Nnadozie (seven points) in a week when most saw their pick, Hannah Hampton, blank.
Who has the edge?
The simple answer here is nobody.
Though Jill Scott Hirons claims the top spot after Matchweek 7, just 21 points separate them from the players ranked joint 156th on 160 points.
A lot can change before Leg 2 concludes in Matchweek 11.
Now might be the time to consider a Wildcard or whether you should let that free transfer roll over into next week.
An inspired choice at captain, a few smart differential selections and a big defensive points haul can fire you into contention to win prizes come the end of November.
